Even Gods Cry
by Mia Vaan
Summary: Monkey has a nightmare.


**Disclaimer: I don't own _The New Legends of Monkey_ or its characters. There is no profit here to be found.**

**AN: My muse hit me with this, too. So have some more fic.**

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The quiet of the night was broken by the sound of whimpering.

Tripitaka was immediately alert, and the first thought that entered her mind was '_Sandy's having another nightmare_'. Nightmares were frequent for the water God after everything she'd been through.

Only, Sandy wasn't there. She and Pigsy had gone to scout ahead, to determine a safe passage through the mountains that wasn't riddled with demons and bandits. It would have been easier to fly over, but the cloud was being temperamental, much to Monkey's frustration.

Monkey. He was the only one with her.

She glanced over at the God on the other side of the fire. He was curled up with a hand partially in his mouth, sucking on it, and looking so adorably boyish that Tripitaka couldn't help smiling at him. There was a slight frown on his face, far more visible than normal since his hair was tied up, but he looked peaceful.

Tripitaka was about to write off the sound as her imagination when she heard it again, and there was no doubt that it came from Monkey. He began twitching as his hand fell from his mouth, and his face filled with an expression she'd never seen on him before: one of fear. He whimpered again, his breathing switched from even to uneven in seconds, and his whole body convulsed in distress.

Without hesitation, Tripitaka leapt to her feet and hurried around the fire. She knelt beside Monkey and gave him a gentle shake to try and rouse him. "Monkey, wake up. You're having a nightmare. Monkey!"

Suddenly he shot upright, eyes wide open, and the sound that left his mouth was a combination of an animalistic roar and a painful cry. In that moment, he was so full of rage and agony that Tripitaka instinctively shuffled backwards. She knew he'd never hurt her, but she'd seen what he was like when he was out of control; she didn't want to get in the way of that.

The slight noise she made as she moved back caught his attention, and his head snapped to face her. For a brief moment she saw the fury of the Gods in his eyes as he bared his teeth, but all of that melted away in seconds when he beheld her. His almost silent growls cut off with a sob; his rage was replaced with relief, though the agony remained.

"Tripitaka…" Her name passed his lips, barely a whisper. His eyes glistened with what could only be tears as he hesitantly reached towards her, and Tripitaka moved forwards again to meet him.

"I'm here." She wasn't a mind reader, but she could guess what his nightmare had been about. The way he was looking at her… She wondered if he'd seen her falling again, reliving the events of Jade Mountain, or if he'd seen something entirely different.

She went from suspicious to certain when Monkey's hand touched her cheek; he rubbed his thumb along her skin in two gentle circles before his hand moved down to grip her shoulder. He squeezed her like he was confirming she was real; that she was alive and there before him. She wanted to ask him about it and assure him that what he'd seen wasn't real, but then a twig snapped in the bushes nearby.

It could have been anything. Pigsy and Sandy returning. An animal foraging for food. Travellers. Demons. But Monkey only considered that last option, if his reaction was any indication.

He moved so fast that Tripitaka barely had time to react. One moment she was sat beside him, and the next she was pressed up against his chest, his arm wrapped around her waist with an iron grip. His hair was loose and his staff was in his hand, pointing in the direction the sound had come from. He was sat upright, his breathing quick and uneven like it was before, and his entire chest vibrated.

She hadn't processed it before, but the sound was louder this time, and she couldn't ignore it. Monkey was growling, like a feral animal.

And yet, she wasn't afraid. She could never be afraid of him, even when he lost control and showed her just how powerful he really was. He was practically her best friend, and she knew he'd never hurt her.

The God was pulling her closer and closer to him, and his gaze never left the direction of the sound. Tripitaka didn't know what was out there, but she _did_ know that she had to calm her friend down before he lost it completely. The last thing she needed was for him to slaughter an unsuspecting little rabbit by mistake.

"Monkey…" She turned to face him and managed to lift her hand up to cup his cheek. "It's OK. I'm here. I'm safe. Calm down. You and I both know demons would make more noise than that. It was probably an animal."

She stroked her thumb along his skin, mirroring his own actions towards her. Monkey finally tore his gaze away from the dark forest and looked down at her. The raging ocean in his eyes gave way to calm seas, and the growling slowly slipped away. He dropped his staff and wrapped his other arm around her, pulling her even closer to him as he buried his face against her neck. She felt a wet splodge on her shoulder as it seeped through to her skin.

His voice was hushed, but she could make out what he was whispering into her shoulder.

"Tripitaka… My little monk… Mine… Don't leave…"

She didn't respond. She'd already promised him before that she wouldn't leave him again, at least not voluntarily. Though he probably feared that more, having to watch her be taken from him…

"I still have the first watch," she said after a while. She'd almost forgotten about it.

"I won't sleep again tonight," said Monkey, removing his face from her shoulder. "You sleep. I'll keep watch." He rested his chin on top of her head and made no move to let her go.

Tripitaka contemplated moving out of his embrace, but then decided against it. The Monkey King was always so full of bravado; always acting like he didn't care and nothing phased him. It was rare that he let this side of him show, and she was going to take full advantage of it for as long as she could.

There was also the fact that if the nightmare was as bad as she suspected it was, he needed this assurance that she was safe and close. She didn't mind giving him this comfort; letting him do what he needed to.

Still, she wanted to be comfortable. "If we're going to stay like this, could you at least take your armour off?"

While she couldn't see his face, she knew he was frowning. "Oh. Right." He pulled away from her and began removing his armour, first taking off his arm guards and then pulling his leather body armour off over his head.

Even though she'd seen his bare chest before, Tripitaka couldn't help the way her face flushed at the sight. Unlike the last time it had happened (when he'd seen her reaction and smirked), Monkey didn't notice. His attention was instead drawn to how wet his eyes were; he wiped away a tear and froze, staring at the small drip on his finger. Then he hurriedly dried his eyes and composed himself.

Seeing the familiar dismissive look on his face, Tripitaka thought he'd changed his mind and wasn't going to hold her again. But then he held out his arms and silently gestured for her to return to them.

It really must have been some nightmare, to break through his bravado. She returned to his embrace and rested her head against his chest, curling up in his lap. Though he hid it well, she was able to sense how shaken he truly was by what he'd seen. And she hated that he felt the need to hide it, especially from her. True, it was who he was, but she wished he'd open up to her more.

"There's no shame in feeling fear," she assured him. "Even Gods have nightmares. Even Gods cry."

He didn't say anything in reply, though once she closed her eyes, he began to gently stroke her hair as he hummed a song of the Old Gods. The deep sound was soothing.

It lulled her to sleep, but right before she drifted off, she felt Monkey place a light kiss atop of her head.

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**AN: So according to Wikipedia, the second season has gone into production. I've seen zero evidence for this anywhere else and I don't trust Wikipedia all that much... I've searched the web for any articles that supports this and found none, but if anyone else can find one (or anything that points towards there being a second season) then let me know.**


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